


A Force To Be Reckoned With

by rinrin_obliviate



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Album: folklore (Taylor Swift), Albus Potter is a gay disaster, And Lily, Angst, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Harry Potter Next Generation, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Compliant, Humor, James might or might not have a few brain cells left, Light Angst, M/M, Mild Language, Mutual Pining, No seriously this fic might be short, Post-Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Rose just wants to get over with the pining, Scorbus Fest 2020, Scorpius Malfoy is a confused duck, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, also, at least i did, but I love everyone, but he's still a little cinnamon roll, oh you're going to love her, she's responsible for putting up with everyone's shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:13:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26113969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rinrin_obliviate/pseuds/rinrin_obliviate
Summary: Lily Luna Potter was a force to be reckoned with.At least, that was how she viewed herself. Being the youngest, she was responsible for carrying four brain cells—one for her, one for Albus, and two extra ones for James. She was blunt but tactful, short but unrelenting, but mostly, she was brave but not stupid.So when Albus landed himself in trouble more serious than time-turners and world domination, it was Lily who just had to help her brother pull his actualshittogether.She shot a last, warning glance at James. “I’d like to be your voice of reason at this point, but right now I’m sleepy and I need to go to bed.” She turned to Lily. “Try not to let your brother blow up the whole school.”She unblinkingly returned Rose’s gaze. “Which brother?”“Both.”
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, James Sirius Potter/Original Female Character(s), Scorpius Malfoy/Albus Severus Potter
Comments: 8
Kudos: 77
Collections: Scorbus Fest 2020





	A Force To Be Reckoned With

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first entry for the Scorbus Fest, so please bear with me! Thanks to @Sapphicfangirll for beta-ing my work, and to @Daughter_of_Song_DXXIX for checking my summary! Ya'll are the best.
> 
> Enjoy!

Lily Luna Potter was a force to be reckoned with.

At least, that was how she viewed herself. For all she knew it was how other people saw her too: fiery and fierce, just like her mother; and of course, bold and impulsive as The Boy Who Lived himself. She also had her namesakes to blame for. After all, her parents shared at least one reasonable brain cell to name her after a single person who was very well _alive_.

Still, being the spawn of the boy who defeated death and the Quidditch superstar wasn’t enough. He had two brothers that shadowed her: one named after two lads who almost wreaked havoc inside Hogwarts; and another named after strong men, who, while undoubtedly brave, certainly made questionable life decisions. Lily was very much aware that she was named after her grandmother (which was probably Harry’s decision, _again_ ), who fearlessly flung herself in front of her dad to protect him from a noseless monster.

So yeah, when it comes to namesakes, her only hope of leading a healthy, normal life accompanied by physical and emotional stability was her Aunt Luna, who until now had an odd fascination for Wrackspurts. 

She didn’t even know how the thought of her namesakes occurred to him at all. It was probably around midnight, and she was _freezing to death_. From the outside, the sky cried in clear crystalline snowflakes, wrapping the grass in a thick, heavenly blanket that lulled the world towards an unperturbed sleep.

But for some reason, Lily couldn’t sleep at all. And based on the light thud that just resonated from the other side of her room, it looked there was one person in the house who couldn’t sleep either.

Knowing all too well that she wasn’t going to get in bed anytime sooner, Lily heaved herself up, hoisting her thick, favorite blanket into her hands while simultaneously letting half of it dangle into the ground. She couldn’t be bothered with cleanliness. Not really.

Lily squeezed her tiny frame into the tight gap between the door and their wall. She could hear James's loud, obnoxious snores from the distance, and from there she could imagine waking up to her brother’s dried saliva as he walked down the stairs for breakfast.

She crept along the hallway, tactfully avoiding every brittle, wooden creaks the floor had to offer her. Lily had lived at the Potter’s household long enough to memorize its imperfections. It wasn’t that she minded it; in fact, it only gave her the sense of home no place could match—not even Hogwarts. 

A sudden chill. The sound of a rusty door against a creaky wall, followed by a light, dull strumming that could easily be mistaken as the breeze. But if she leaned in closely, just for a little bit-

_Wise men say_

_Only fools rush in_

_But I can't help falling in love with you_

The sound of the guitar or the faint whisper of a song might have surprised her mum and dad. They might cast safety charms and conduct a house inspection, only to heave a sigh of relief when they find out who it was. James might even piss himself—but not her. Not Lily Luna. 

_Shall I stay?_

_Would it be a sin_

_If I can't help falling in love with you?_

She allowed herself to stand for a while, with her fingers hanging solemnly in the air, held by invisible threads. 

_Like a river flows_

_Surely to the sea_

_Darling, so it goes_

_Some things are meant to be_

_Take my hand_

_Take my whole life too_

_For I can't help falling in love with you_

“That’s a new song.” 

Albus didn’t look back. If he noticed her standing right behind the door, Albus paid no attention. Instead he bowed his head, drumming his fingers on the guitar to cut the silence. 

One, two, three seconds in, and Lily allowed herself to step into her brother’s room. It was untidy and unkempt, but to his credit, Albus’s room was a lot cleaner than her’s or James’s. Old, ancient copies of Hogwarts textbooks were stacked neatly on one side. Around her hung a series of postcards and Slytherin banners that fluttered lightly from the wind. On his desk was a single picture frame, and on it dangled a green emerald necklace. 

She went over Albus’s bed and sat beside him. “You’re getting considerably better.”

“Not really.” his voice was rough, like quill scraping parchment. “Not since summer.” 

“You could bring it to Hogwarts, you know,” Lily suggested, both her and Albus fully knowing what _it_ meant. “We could always find a way to shrink it.”

For the first time he glanced at her, mustering a light, joking smile. “Remember the last time James shrank half of his wardrobe?”

“Oh, right.” The unspoken memory of his older brother’s shrillest shriek was something both of them could never forget. “Mum was so pissed she refused to help him out for about _a week_.”

Albus chuckled, allowing himself to laugh a little before silence lapsed between them. The only sound present was the gust of wind, followed by the occasional thick, round blobs of snow that splattered across the roof like shooting stars, faint but repetitive. 

Lily, who treated noise as if it was her second home, didn’t have any room for awkward gestures. So she spoke, bluntly. “Does Scorpius know you play?”

It was just as she predicted it. The mention of Scorpius’s name was enough for Albus to squirm away from her gaze. He was back to drumming his fingers against the instrument, right at the spot where the unmistakable Scorpius constellation was etched. Lily had no idea how Albus worked out the charm, but somehow, it was enchanted so that each star twinkled on the guitar like little droplets.

“No,” he said, almost akin to a whisper. “No, he doesn’t.”

His replies were short and frank, so Lily decided to do the same. “Why didn’t you tell him?”

“I never thought about it.”

His feeble excuses wouldn’t have cut out with her, but Lily knew better than to point that out in front of Albus’s face. “He would’ve wanted to see you play.”

She expected Albus to lash out, to snap and bribe her away. He let out a sad chuckle instead, like he had already accepted that he wasn’t worth spending time for. “How do you know that? How do you know what he wants?” He gave the guitar a single strum before abruptly pulling into a stop. “I don’t even know what _I_ want.”

Lily only smiled. Her brother was _so_ smitten. “I think it’s not a question of _what_ , but of _who_.”

She let the silence drag on for a while Albus needed to process what she said. Her brother could be as moody and deep as he could let on, but sometimes he was as shallow as he could get. His gaze alternated from Lily to the guitar, then back to her again. Finally…

“I love him.”

When she was around the age of eight, Lily had lost control of her broom by flying high enough to surpass her limits. Albus, who was scared shitless of even holding one, unhesitantly launched himself into James’s mini firebolt and grasped her by the waist just in time for her not to hit a lamp post. He was her protector then.

When she was sorted into Gryffindor, she didn’t care about the applause. She couldn't bother noticing the loud boom resonating from her fellow housemates. No, her first gaze was at the Slytherin table. Lily saw Albus deflate like a melancholic balloon, with Scorpius whispering something uselessly in his ear. It was clear to her, that time—why he had been so sad for the past two years. 

Lily swore to protect him that day. 

She dealt with the bullies silently when both Albus and Scorpius were out of sight. There were no teachers too, of course. It’ll be the simple, subtle ones that were long-lasting: casting enchantments on quills so it would conjure wittily constructed insults; or slacks that she would patiently steal at night for months until they were completely missing. It was the best way she could do her part in protecting him.

This time, however, she wasn’t sure if she could protect him from his feelings.

“I know.” It was all she could say. She was in the mood to match her brother’s angstiness for the night.

Albus stared at her, frightened and hopeful at once. “I don’t know what to do.”

Lily scooted closer to him. She clutched the clumsily knitted blanket she had in hand, and with her thin, small arms, she wrapped one side of it behind Albus’s back and the other half behind her, so that they were sharing a single blanket slung across their shoulders. 

“You don’t have to do anything.” A pale shaft of moonlight slashed through the window, casting light, vacant shadows on the walls. Somehow, it gave them a sense of temporary comfort. “Not yet.”

\------

“We have to _do_ something.”

Lily sat by the fireplace of the Gryffindor common room, red, fiery tendrils of smoke and ash giving a sense of warmth. With a cup of tea in hand, she watched James pace back and forth he toured the whole common room ten times at this point. 

Honestly, it was starting to make her dizzy.

“The two of them are _impossible._ ” James playfully kicked the carpet. “Don’t they realize how the _entire_ Hogwarts’s betting system is at stake simply because they’re too adamant on confessing their feelings?”

Lily had to disagree for a bit. “I wouldn’t call it adamant, but go on.”

“Albus and Scorpius are so smitten for each other they would have surpassed Romeo and Juliet’s stupidity at this point.” James rolled his eyes, strutting around for about five consecutive times before allowing himself to sit on the couch opposite her. “Something has to be done, and I have an idea.”

Rose glanced smugly from her own copy of Numerology and Grammatica, which probably weighed half her body size. “Why do I get the feeling that everything will go downhill with that phrase?”

“It’s not a feeling,” Lily agreed, not looking up as she took another swig of tea. “It’s a fact. Get used to it.”

“Ha!” James perked up, his gaze returning to Rose’s as if she was the life-long solution to a mishap he caused in the first place. “But you’re interested, aren’t you? I mean, why be here in the first place?”

“Because Albus’s boyfriend won’t stop clinging to me like a Mandrake.” It was her cousin’s turn to rant. “Yesterday he approached me at History of Magic to tell me that I smell of strawberries. I want to, just for once, live my life in _peace_.”

 _Huh,_ Lily thought. That was weird, because Albus’s shampoo very much reeked in strawberries. Realizing this, she smiled inwardly, the very notion of what Rose had revealed confirming her very suspicions. 

James smirked. “Peace is not the word that exists in the Potter-Weasley clan.” With that, he snapped his fingers in an attempt to gain their undivided attention. “I was thinking of something mediocre and very Albus-y. What if we leave a secret stash of love letters in Scorpius's bed?”

“And make it look like it’s from Albus?” Lily queried. She took her brother’s nod as a confirmation. “Bad idea. How can we even forge his handwriting in the first place?”

Rose snapped her book shut, looking like she was out of her mind. “Only Albus could understand his revision notes. To top it off, Scorpius is not that _daft._ He has known Albus for five years; surely he’d have recognized his best friend’s handwriting in an instant.”

“Right, right,” James muttered, his eyebrows scrunched in deep thought. Lily only wanted to laugh, and Rose was itching to get everything done. “I know! Let’s host a party at the Gryffindor Common Room, invite them to a game of spin the bottle, and let everything flow smoothly afterward.”

“I feel like this is an excuse for you to smuggle Firewhiskey and get yourself drunk enough to forget about _why_ you hosted the party in the first place.”

Lily, after watching James and Rose bicker in silence, finally decided to say something. “They’d reject the invitation. Knowing Albus and Scorpius, they’d prefer spending a Friday night cuddling in the Slytherin dorms with intoxicating sweets.”

“Merlin.” James deflated. “They’re so into each other we might as well owl hundreds of Howlers at the Great Hall that screamed ‘ _Albus loves Scorpius’_ accompanied by glittering, rainbow confetti.”

“And then let our brother hex us into oblivion?” Lily asked. “I’d like to keep my sanity intact, thanks.”

James snickered. “Let’s get this over with and lock them in the Prefect’s Bathroom.”

“Remember what happened the last time you did that?”

“We are _not_ locking our brother in the Prefect’s Bathroom.”

Both Lily and Rose had spoken at the same time, and James took this as a sign of defeat. 

“You know what we need? A breaking point. We don’t have to make them fall in love with each other; they’re _already_ in love. Utterly, _terribly_ in love it’s so frustrating. No, we have to make a breaking point so that they can finally muster the courage to admit their own damn feelings.”

Rose guffawed. “How did you know all this?”

James only winked, doing what Lily dubbed as the James-like grin. “One word: _experience_.”

Lily only raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think staring at your girlfriend with vomit-inducing lovesick eyes counts as experience.” 

“We leave Betty out of this.” James held a hand, swaying it dramatically into a fist in an attempt to get her to shut up. “And besides, that easily worked out with the help of some firewhiskey and a game of five minutes in heaven.”

As if her brother had an epiphany, James shot up from the couch so fast he might as well skyrocket towards the ceiling. “That’s it!”

Lily raised an eyebrow, darting her gaze from left to right before mustering the driest, Albus-y look on her face. “Cut the dramatic entrance and get straight to the point.”

“We lock them in one of the abandoned classrooms.”

Rose was staring at him with the same look she had when Hugo had casually asked what a blow job was at the dinner table. Lily simply heaved a sigh. “And how does that serve as a breaking point?”

James clasped his hands in excitement. “It’s night, there’s no one around, and they’re stuck in a cramped space with no way to get out. They’d have no choice but to man up. They get the snog, I get the money.”

“Easy for you to say. What if they got detentions?”

“The worst Filch can do is assign both of them polishing ancient trophies, and by then they could end up at the trophy room and snog some more. It’s foolproof.”

Rose gave James a stare that very much looked like Aunt Hermione’s. Finally, after another sinking feeling of realization that her brother was serious, Rose loaded an enormous stack of parchment into her arms while declaring something about heading to bed. 

She shot a last, warning glance at James. “I’d like to be your voice of reason at this point, but right now I’m sleepy and I need to go to bed.” She turned to Lily. “Try not to let your brother blow up the whole school.”

She unblinkingly returned Rose’s gaze. “Which brother?”

“Both.” Lily understood the context. She knew her cousin’s intentions were pure of heart, but she wasn’t to be bossed around for being the child. She was the _youngest_ , for Merlin’s sake. Lily already had two brothers to do that.

She went for James instead. “And how, exactly, are you going to get them into an abandoned classroom _without_ being as subtle as a mountain troll?

James had a wild, manic glint in his eyes, one Lily recognized long enough to dub it as _‘the calm before the storm.'_ It was one of those expressions her brother mindlessly wore the second _everything_ went downhill. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder how things would turn out for James, and possibly with Albus and Scorpius.

As she took her last swig of tea, Lily waited to hear his words.

“I have a plan.”

\------

According to her calculations, Lily had to bump her head approximately 110 times against the wall before earning herself a concussion.

She wasn’t very good at Arithmancy or anything number related. She didn’t excel in Muggle school, having a remote thrown against the board followed by a five-minute fit because of accidental magic. She wasn’t even in the mood to _think_ at this point. 

But judging by how everything was going on, she might as well acquire a concussion than eavesdrop to one of the boring, slow-paced thirty-minute conversations of her life. 

_“-Do you think chocolate frogs feel the slightest pain when we chew them, Albus? I know they’re just mere chocolates with enhanced enchantments, but still. Maybe we should ask them once we get out of here-”_

Lily once again banged her head forcefully against the classroom door for good measure.

“Hey!” James emerged from the corner of a hallway, the soles of his Gryffindor robes already laced with wrinkles and creases. He whispered a light _Lumos_ , and with it a warm glow of artificial brightness filled the pitch-black hallway. “Don’t do that! I don’t want Filch to end up with two ragged boys and one dead corpse who turned out to be my sister tomorrow morning.”

Lily was squinting, and distantly she could hear the slightly disgruntled noises from various portraits. “There won’t be any two ragged boys tomorrow, James. They’re hardly doing anything!”

James’s shadow towered over her. “Wait, you mean they aren’t in the middle of confessing their undying love for each other?” He dramatically flung himself beside Lily, pressing his ear against the wall to grasp any sound. “I don’t hear smooching noises.”

She didn’t know to whom she was more pissed off—Albus, who wasn’t able to hint anything to Scorpius for the past thirty minutes, or James, whose _‘well-executed plan’_ was fashionably backfiring.

Merlin, she was the only sensible person here. 

_“-You know the funniest thing about chocolate frogs? Muggles have actual scientific names allotted after them. Names, Albus, just because some wizards paused to think about how it would have been a great idea to accidentally set them loose.”_

“Are you kidding me?” James's voice almost reached to a whisper-shout. “Did you stack a pile of Chocolate Frogs and Jelly Slugs somewhere around the room before executing the plan?”

“I didn’t.” The nerve of her brother to accuse her was irritating, especially when it should have been the other way around. “And for the record, it was _you_ who executed the plan.”

“I didn’t know they were both this _dense._ ” James pressed his cheek closer. “Shh, listen.”

Loud, resonating thuds emanated throughout the room, which was quickly followed by indistinct muffled laughter and light shuffling of robes. _“I guess we can try and answer your question once you visit the house.”_

Both Albus and Scorpius turned silent. She shared a look with James.

“Was that Albus?”

It was Lily’s turn to shush him. “Isn’t it obvious?”

 _“I’m sorry! I didn’t-”_ Albus spluttered over his words. _“You don’t have to. My family can be loud. Very, very loud. Lily might invite you to design flower crowns for your hair, while James might pull a prank or two. It’s a tradition—my room’s pretty bland, anyway. There are only some books and a rusty guitar. And your dad, Draco, I don’t think-”_

_“You play the guitar?”_

James took the silence as an opportunity to blurt out his thoughts. “Okay, first of all, _rude._ Second, he doesn’t know?”

Lily only shook his head, recalling the conversation she had with Albus the winter before. 

_“I-”_ Even when she wasn’t looking, Lily didn’t have to peek to know how Albus was visibly swallowing in defeat, or how he allowed his shoulders to sag so that his jet black hair made its way to cover his shame-stricken eyes. _“Yes.”_

 _“I hear you sing in the shower,”_ Scorpius’s voice was _gentle_ , soft enough that Lily had to scoot closer just to get a tiny grasp of what he was saying. “ _I don’t recognize most of the songs, but I think you’re really good. I just don’t think you want me pointing that out every time you come out of the bathroom, dripping wet and everything.”_

James scoffed. “Of course, because he’s too busy looking at our brother’s abs.” 

Lily tried his hardest not to laugh. “Shut up and stop ruining the moment.”

_“Someday I’ll let you listen to them.”_

She knew what Albus meant by that: _Someday, I’ll let you listen to my heart._

Deciding that he was done putting up with Albus’s shit, James heaved himself up before clumsily patting his cheek that was previously stuck to the wall. “I’ve had enough. I have a Herbology exam tomorrow morning, for Merlin’s sake. All I heard were heart to heart sharing and life lessons.”

Lily followed suit. “What did you expect? Dirty sex and BDSM?”

James’s eyes turned so wide it could almost surpass one of the school’s house-elves. He was horrified, and even then, he was staring at her with mock offense. “Lily Luna Potter! You cleanse yourself right this instant.”

She finally gained the upper hand. “You’re starting to sound like mum.”

“Better mum than dad,” James snapped until it dawned to him that she was luring him into what she called the _‘Lulu’_ trap. “No wait, you’re thirteen! Do you even know what BDSM means?”

“Book Discussions and Study Meetings?” Lily deadpanned.

James was conflicted. His gaze averted to the long stretch of hallways, then Lily’s. Finally, using his excellent, widely-renowned decision-making skills, James tugged her by the arm as they rounded up a corner.

“Wait,.” Lily pried her arm away from James. “You trapped both of them in an abandoned classroom only not to help them get out?”

As usual, the same irritating smug grin was plastered on James’s face. “Nah, the charm’s just advanced fifth-year incantation. I’m sure Scorpius knows how to do it by now.”

Lily eyed him with a faint streak of amusement. _At least James still has a piece of brain cells for him to function._

But whatever James had in mind clearly didn’t work, and all she got that night was a meaningful conversation she hadn’t mean to overhear, a sleep-deprived version of herself, and a lot of straight to the point, uneducated safe sex talk from his very flustered brother.

\------

“Can I borrow my brother for a while?”

Albus shot up so quickly she thought he might have seen a ghost. Scorpius looked like he just walked into two people snogging. And Lily, well, she was leaning casually against the library shelf, carrying a stack of Herbology books Uncle Neville had suggested for bedtime reading. 

She offered a sickeningly, sweet smile solely allotted for her brother, whose expression clearly morphed into a frown. Scorpius bent down in a rush, pressing a clutter of books into his chest he had accidentally knocked in panic. Albus took a moment to mouth something incoherent towards Lily, which she chose to ignore until necessary.

Instead, Lily let her gaze land briefly on the table, where she could make out faint splatters of ink next to an empty stack of parchment. The blatant, unrelenting stress of fifth-year OWL’s wasn’t new to her. From time to time she saw a herd of fifth years from her own house down a concerning amount of coffee mixed with energy drinks in one go. It was Albus’s turn to experience that.

Scorpius got back from his seat, but not before accidentally jerking his hand too hard for him to hit the edge of the table... _again_. 

“Oh, Lily!” Scorpius opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it as soon as he remembered why she came here in the first place.”Uhh, sure! Sure, you could _borrow_ Albus. I mean, it’s not like he’s all _mine_ in the first place.” Scorpius was fidgeting with his hands, chuckling nervously as if he had been caught in an act.

“Great!” Lily offered a genuine smile. She cocked her head sideways, making sure Albus’s gaze was fixated on her “Al?”

Albus glanced at Scorpius in reluctance, who in return gave a comforting, subtle nod. If she didn’t know any better, Lily would have shamelessly ignored the way Scorpius’s arm slithered away before letting his thumb rub soothing circles on her brother’s knee. Albus, who was as tense as a pole the moment before, now visibly relaxed as he returned the same, knowing nod to Scorpius.

 _Bloody hell_ , the mutual pining was so obvious it’s infuriating.

She didn’t have to wait for Albus to stand up before strutting towards the opposite side of the library, far enough for Scorpius not to hear. Her well-paced, elegant strides were matched by a few loud, clumsy ones, and she didn’t need to spare a glance to figure out that Albus was following her.

“What do you want?”

Smirking internally, Lily drew her wand and hastily cast a Muffliato. She abruptly stopped in her heels and did a full 180-degree turn towards Albus, making sure her fiery, red hair flipped in a way that made her look, well, _Lily-like._

“What’s with the Muffliato?” Albus’s frown deepened. “Lily, I swear if this is you trying to-”

“When I said you don’t have to do anything...” Lily started talking. “I didn’t mean for you not to do anything at _all._ ”

“Is this about— _oh_.” The mere mention of winter break’s conversation took a lot from Albus. She expected him to recoil in surprise or doubt, or even deny the conversation happened at all. No, he was doing nothing of the kind. Instead he leaned against a creaky wall, his shoulders sagging heavily like a rain-soaked coat. Fear and resignation danced in his eyes, as if Albus already accepted the fact that he was in love with Scorpius and there was nothing he could do about it.

She let her voice go moderately gentle this time. “You’re going to have to tell him eventually.”

“And then what?” Albus’s hand flew instinctively in his scalp, tugging a handful of hair out of frustration. It only made his hair more disheveled. “Potentially ruin five years of friendship?”

Having heard himself, Albus let his hand fall against his side, looking like a dejected young boy who lost his favorite toy. Lily was silent for a while. Then… “You don’t think he loves you too?”

He hesitated for a while. Despite his unrefined gallantry, Lily miraculously understood him for some reason. It took a lot to be sixteen and unsure, and even then Albus was bound to make mistakes at some point. “What if I’m making myself believe there’s something even though there’s not?”

However, Lily simply couldn’t fathom how Albus could sit and not do anything. “If you think your eyes are playing tricks on you, then all of Hogwarts desperately need some glasses at this point.”

Lily took her brother’s silence as a way to continue. “Albus Severus Potter, I’m not going to stand here and point out every single evidence to prove how Scorpius Hyperion is drooling all over you.” Lily sighed, combing her hands through her hair in exasperation. “But I’m also not going to stand and watch you poke a broom in your head for _months_.”

“Poking a broom seems easier than blurting out anything to Scorpius.”

“You’re not going to tell him anything before you invite him to our house, are you?” It took a second for Lily to register what she blurted out, but when it did... _shit._ She could’ve cursed her own mouth right there and then.

Instead of a look of offense, however, Albus allowed himself to grin. “Flitwick requiring extra work in the middle of the night is a pretty feeble excuse, to be honest. Unless he had some...nightly extracurriculars we didn’t know.”

Lily felt a slight ounce of guilt. If Albus had known all along, then it must have been Scorpius who insisted on reaching the classroom. Still, the past was past, and she had new priorities to sort out—one that included _both_ of them. “In my defense, it was James who orchestrated the whole thing.”

Albus scrunched his nose as he eyed her curiously. “Why were you there, then?”

“Rose made sure I was there to supervise both of you. And James. Mostly James.”

The mention of Rose’s name turned Albus overly sulky again, as if all the light had drained out from his eyes. “Oh, right. _Rose._ ”

He said her name as if it was poison, and truth be told Lily couldn’t bring herself to blame him. For one, she knew Albus didn’t really mean it. Albus _didn’t_ hate Rose. In fact things were going back to the way it was before, with Rose urging to be his voice of reason while Albus went on sulking around the corner. No, it was the fact that Scorpius was seemingly obsessing over his cousin that made everything a hundred times worse. 

Lily dug the best comparison she had. “You know Rose likes Scorpius the way she likes coffee, right?”

“But…” Albus thought for a while. “She prefers tea over coffee.”

“Exactly,” she shot him a knowing look. “Rose doesn’t fancy Scorpius from head to toe. They’re better off as friends, and well, house competitors.”

“But it’s the other way around. It’s Scorpius who fancies Rose.” Albus helplessly stared at her. He was readily giving up a battle that wasn’t even starting yet. “And who can blame him? She’s _Rose_ , for Merlin’s sake.”

“And I’m a _Lily_.” The opportunity was too real to waste. “So trust me when I say that to compare the way Scorpius looks at you and Rose is like blasting an Acromantula and a Bowtruckle in a battlefield.”

Albus chewed on his bottom lip, unsure. He was fiddling with the hems of a grey, knitted sweater Scorpius gave as a birthday present during his third year. She distinctly remembered him refusing to get it to the laundry the summer after, and even then Albus had to watch mum carefully smoothen its creases to make sure everything was intact. After a long stretch of silence…

“I don’t want to risk it,” Albus’s voice was strained, almost as if he was desperately trying his hardest to convince himself rather than her. “I’m not like you, Lils. I’m not a Gryffindor.”

“You don’t have to be me. Or dad, or mum. You’re very much not like James, thank goodness, because the world doesn’t need another clone of him.” Then, as if Dumbledore's spirit descended from the heavens and possessed her soul, she found herself saying the next thought that popped into her mind. “Tell him, Albus. If it works out, I’ll be here for you, and if it doesn’t, I still will.”

Albus almost looked convinced. “I’m not a Gryffindor,” he repeated, almost in a whisper. _That_ house, that perception of being brave was his own brother’s shred of doubt, and Lily was damned if she was going to let Albus fall because of it. 

She took three steps closer to Albus before squeezing his hand.

“You don’t have to be a Gryffindor to know what it means to be brave.”

\------

She knew what she had to do. 

Albus never needed protection from his feelings—he just needed help with them, and that’s exactly what she was going to do.

But Scorpius should be out by now. Other students had breezed away from the Arithmancy classroom five minutes ago, leaving the seventh-floor hallways silent and deserted aside from the occasional clicks and clacks from unpolished portraits. 

She glanced at a wall clock, which worked perfectly well despite how it hung limply against one side, the rustiness presenting itself as it threatened to fall off. Knowing Scorpius, he was probably in the middle of a five-minute chat with the disgruntled Arithmancy Professor about charts and diagrams and head-ache inducing topics. 

And by this she had to abandon her daily gossip sessions and hourly skincare routines.

By the time the door finally opened, a student with an unmistakable white blonde hair wedged himself clumsily between the walls, almost tripping himself as he forced two, gigantic books in his poor, miniature shoulder bag. 

Now was the time.

Scorpius was clearly taken by surprise at her sudden appearance. His mouth morphed into something akin to a confused goldfish, which Albus must have found endearingly cute. Lily didn’t give him the chance to react, however, when she pinned her arm against the wall to block any potential chances of escape. 

“I know you’re dating my brother.”

To say that Scorpius was caught off guard was an understatement. He looked like she just challenged him to a game of block and catch, and honestly, Lily couldn't blame him. His cheeks were so red a tomato might as well shrunk in shame.

 _Good_ , Lily thought. That was what she expected. “I know you’re dating Albus,” she repeated firmly. “But I also know that you’re a particularly kind person. Still, it’s a tradition to give every boyfriend _the talk._ ”

Scorpius seemed conflicted between two courses of actions: thank her for the compliment, or clear what must have been the most surprising misconception. Lily didn’t give him the chance to do either.

“I know that you have embarrassing baby photos cramped uselessly against the Malfoy Manor. I know you smuggle food from the kitchens every Friday night. I know you like to poke holes around your knitted scarves every chance you get, and I know that you _borrow_ Albus’s strawberry-scented shampoo thinking he doesn’t know you do it.”

A chuckle itched through Lily’s throat. The information she had gathered from her brother’s constant summer ramblings about Scorpius wasn’t blackmail-worthy at all, but she was at least glad that she could use it to her own accord. 

“Lily.” It took Scorpius a while for him to detach himself from shock, which Lily would have photographed if she had a camera. “Albus and I, we’re not-”

She wasn’t having any of it. The more she gave Scorpius the chance to interrupt her, the more her plan might slip away.

“I _know_ -,” Lily pointed at him. “That he loves you too.”

Scorpius went silent at that. Lily’s features turned into something softer, less intimidating. “He loves you so much he talks about you 24/7 during breaks, enough to spend the whole winter thinking of a perfect Christmas present. He loves you so much he has your constellation carved in his guitar. He loves you so much he refuses to throw that emerald, chained necklace because you said it reminds you of his eyes, and so much he saves you his last, best piece of treacle tart.”

Lily paused for a breath, her gaze still absorbed by Scorpius’s grey eyes. Albus had talked about them once, and he was right. Scorpius’s eyes were deep and unscathed, full of knowledge and power and curiosity no one can deprive him of. 

“So don’t lose him.” 

She took her hand away from the wall and hoped, really _hoped_ , that Scorpius got the context. All that was left to do was to turn around and leave a shocked, flustered Scorpius along the way.

She did what she had to do, so she walked away feeling like a boss.

\------

It turned out Albus and Scorpius didn’t need a push; they required a _fucking_ shove.

Not literally, of course. Albus would probably loathe her if she even dared touch his back. Scorpius was too much of a cinnamon roll to fight back, but the hurt expression on his face might just as well be the death of her.

But as she stood behind the large, towering tree at the shore of the Great Lake, Lily couldn’t help but think that her plan might _actually_ work. After all, she _was_ Lily Luna Potter.

However, none of it meant that she was immune to being vulnerable. At least, that was the first thought that popped into her mind as she protectively clutched James’s invisibility cloak against her skin. It was to her advantage that James had the most predictable trunk combination, and another good thing that she stole his invisibility cloak for good measure. The grass felt itchy against the soles of her shoes, and she swore a bug found its way on her shoulder. She could be snuggling by the fireplace of the Gryffindor common room with layers of blankets and a mug of hot cocoa in hand but no, she just _had_ to stand at the spot where Albus and Scorpius preferred to relax.

"The whole school thinks we're dating."

The cloak was clouding her vision, but the thick trees provided enough cover for her to peek through. Albus, who was leaning behind a tree branch, froze at the sudden change of topic.

"Not that I mind, though." Scorpius continued, picking his words as if he was plucking freshly bloomed plums from the garden. "I mean, it's better than being the son of _Voldemort_."

So her plan _had_ worked. It was even better because Scorpius wasn't saying anything about her. "Yeah." Albus cleared his throat in a feat to hide his flustered face. "I'd like that too."

A long stretch of silence. The sound of dried leaves swept away by the wind. Then… "Do you think we look like we're dating, Albus?"

For someone who stumbled over his words pretty often, Scorpius was being surprisingly blunt. "Because there must be a _reason_ why the whole school thinks we're, you know, in a relationship. I've been thinking about it all day, and it's the only conclusion I've arrived with so far but-"

"Let people think what they want, Scorp. Isn't that what you always say?" The effect Scorpius's words had on her brother was astounding. Albus was a nervous wreck in less than a second, who was back to chewing his lower lip and unknowingly fiddling with another loose tie. "Besides, everyone knows you fancy Rose."

As far as the entirety of the Hogwarts population was concerned, her cousin's chance of ending up with Scorpius was exactly zero out of a hundred. 

"I don't like Rose," Scorpius blurted out. "Not anymore."

For the first time, Albus fully turned so he could meet his best friend's gaze. He looked so resigned. "You've been pining over her for five years."

Scorpius went on. "I like Rose as a friend. Maybe as a natural competitor, but I don't think I've ever liked her _that_ way. You know, like how you never really liked Delphi."

Albus visibly cringed at the mention of Voldemort's daughter. Lily had heard of her, of course. Delphi, whose problems circled around inherent daddy issues just like her brother. 

Albus took a deep breath. _Be brave, Al._ "Well, that just gave me hope."

Scorpius looked like he had seen a basilisk. Albus went on a ramble, his eyes darting everywhere except Scorpius’s. "James talked to you, didn't he? Screw that, it's probably Lily. I mean, why else would you be asking those questions? Unless you know how I _feel_ , which in that case, we can just blatantly ignore so we can move on with our lives."

The air was suddenly thick with anticipation. Shock was etched all over Scorpius’s face, his jaw slacked and mouth bobbing like a fish. The gleam of the sunlight made his pale, blonde hair stand out, and even though they were sticking all over the place from lying in the grass, Scorpius looked like a flustered angel (as Albus would describe it). His eyes reflected something else; the shock was evident, no doubt, but there was hope and newfound bravery in them too, like it was his turn to realize what Albus did that winter night. 

For a moment both of them were silent. Then, slowly, Scorpius inched himself closer to Albus, who went back to fiddling with his shoelaces thinking he was a lost cause. He moved until he was centimeters away from Albus before reaching his hand towards her brother’s neck, gently tugging what Lily could make out as a string of gold.

‘We can go forward with our second option.” Scorpius held the emerald chained necklace in front of him. Albus clearly looked confused, because as far as both of them knew there was never a second option. At least, they never considered it until now. “We can choose _not_ to ignore our feelings if I tell you I feel the same.”

Albus’s eyes shot up, but he wasn’t saying anything. “The rumors about us dating...” Scorpius trailed off, staring expectantly at him. “What if I want them to be _real_?”

“Real?” Albus stared at him with an expression Lily recognized far too well. “As in...”

“A new version of us I had in my head,” Scorpius affirmed. 

Her brother was ridiculously stuck in a dream state Lily wanted to walk over and snap him back to reality. “Which version?”

Scorpius gave a discreet smile, one that made him look like he was clearly up to something no one can hint. Still, his expression was far too genuine to be mistaken as _James-like_ to Lily.

 _“This.”_ Right after he said that, Scorpius scooted closer to cut the distance between them.

And then Scorpius was kissing Albus.

It was unnerving really. How Scorpius was inches taller than Albus so her brother’s head was slightly tilted to match the kiss, or how Scorpius’s fingers trailed on Albus’s chest as Albus slowly wormed his arms through the blonde’s neck. It was sweet and simple and a little bit too gross. That was her _brother_ , for Merlin’s sake. She had seen James snog with Betty in the common room too many times, even caught his dad stealing kisses with mum when they thought she wasn’t staring. 

She wasn’t prepared for another one. 

The two broke away eventually, and it took all of Lily’s strength and Gryffindor willpower not to turn away. She was waiting for something, and if she doesn't hear it now then her Galleons were at stake.

“So...” Albus was the first to speak. His cheeks were pink as he tried to catch his breath, and even then Lily had never seen her brother so happy. “I assume that’s the new version of us that you wanted?”

“Yes.” Scorpius was in a daze, Albus was living the dream, and Lily wanted to smack both of their heads together. “Yes, yes. Very much. In fact I’d very much prefer if we do that again.”

“I think we have forever for that,” Albus said. “I love you.”

It was all so sudden and out of the blue, but her brother seemed so sure of himself. There was no fear or hesitation in his voice, only hope and genuine happiness—like he had loved Scorpius all along and even then, he would never stop loving him.

“I know,” Scorpius mused, and Lily wondered if her previous sentiments suddenly occurred to him. “I love you too.”

It was Albus who leaned in for another kiss this time. Lily didn’t have to spare another glance to figure out what they were doing. Instead, she took away her cloak and hung it hastily along her arms, knowing all too well that Scorpius and Albus were so absorbed in their deepened series of kisses they wouldn’t even notice her footsteps.

She exited the scene with a smirk on her face, imagining the look on James’s face as he handed out his pocketful of galleons.

After all, she was _a force to be reckoned with._

**Author's Note:**

> Find me:[rinrin-obliviate](url)
> 
> Also, I might or might not have included a Taylor Swift Folkore reference. Please don't kill me. Thank you!


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